Gracie Barra South

Benefits of  Jiu Jitsu

You do not need not be fit to start Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, regular training will improve your general fitness, flexibility, strength, coordination, reaction time and, above all, self-confidence. Of course, you will also learn to look after yourself. Regular training also results in, for want of a better expression, an increased strength of character. Lessons learned on the mat can filter through and change for the better the way you think of yourself off the mat. The International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation, our governing body, organizes regular gradings, as well as regional and national events. Undertaking the study of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu makes you a part of something much larger than just a martial arts club.

The best way to find out more is to come along to our school and join in. We understand that starting a martial art can be quite daunting, but as a novice, we will not expect you to know it all. Much care will be taken to ensure that you know what to do and that you are learning at a comfortable pace even the instructor was a novice once. All you need to start is a willingness to learn. After a few lessons you might wish to buy a judo gi which is the hard wearing traditional suit, they can be purchased from our school.

THE BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU STRATEGY:

The self-defense strategy for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu students is clear: taking the opponent to the ground. Once the fight is on the ground, the BJJ Practitioner strives to achieve a position where the level of control and dominance over the opponent, and then apply a submission hold. With this end in mind, any Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu student pursues a common set of positions which are called the BJJ Fundamentals. In order to perform this overall strategy, the student must be aware of the three phases of combat:

Free Movement Phase: This is where any fight begins. Without grips and body dominance, striking techniques become the most important. The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner needs to avoid the "fire line" and seek the opportunity of getting into the standing clinch as a means to take his opponent to the ground;

Standing Clinch: Once the clinch is established, the range of striking options diminishes dramatically. On this situation the fighters are looking for spaces to strike and striving to stay in balance. The BJJ Practitioner needs to unbalance his opponent and take him down and utilize Ground Combat techniques.

Ground Combat: Almost every fight ends on the ground, even if the two opponents involved are strikers. On the ground, the fight nature changes, grips and body control become the rule and not the exception. The constant contact creates a lot of op-portunities for the BJJ practitioner move up the level of control until he can defeat his opponent. The common strategy is performed through a set of interrelated ground techniques including: closed guard, open guard, side control, mount control and back control.

WHAT IS JIU-JITSU

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practicality consists partly in learning techniques by practicing them together, and this requires a particular kind of trust. The atmosphere in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu clubs is therefore very friendly, and there is often a vibrant social life off the mat.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is above all a practical, defensive martial art. At its core is the principle that aggression can be overcome by seeming to yield to it, by using an attackers strength, size and momentum to a defenders advantage.

Men and women of all ages, shapes and sizes can therefore become very good at it. Training is gradual, but as you progress through the belt structure you will learn to defend yourself against increasingly demanding attacks, using a system of throws, locks and strikes.